My Prelim Evaluation

 

Here is my prelim task

1. Who did you work with and how did you manage the task between you?

For the prelim task I worked with Aisha, Sailesh and Ray. The four of us planned the scene - storyboard, script and shoot schedule - together and edited in pairs where I was with Aisha. The majority of the filming and directing was carried out by myself and Aisha as the other two were acting in the scene, but they did help on the shots that they weren't in.

We all worked very well together and listened and discussed each others' ideas before deciding, as a group, which ones to go with and I think that is a reason why the task went as smoothly as it did for us.

My group

2. How did you plan your sequence? What processes did you use? What theories did you try to take into account?

In the allotted hour we had to plan, my group and I started by discussing a narrative for the scene and getting a rough idea of the shots we wanted to include, the theories and rules we had to abide by and how we could explicitly meet the demands of the brief. This was followed by us blocking out each shot idea to see whether it would work before drawing them out onto our storyboard, ensuring that we had a variety of shot types and camera movement. We also created a shoot schedule, grouping similar shots and set ups together, and a script for the scene. 

Our Storyboard

Our shoot schedule

The theories we took into account include:

• 180° rule (specified in the brief)
• match on action (specified in brief)
• shot/reverse/shot (specified in brief)
• narrative structure
• 30° rule
• master shot

These theories would all ensure that our scene achieved continuity, didn't include jump cuts and logically made sense to the audience.

In my opinion, the most important part of our planning was blocking out the shots, as this allowed us to properly visualise how they would look and ensured that they could actually be carried out in the space we had. This was particularly important as we had quite a lot of camera movement, including a slight arc and track, which was fairly difficult to position and blocking it out beforehand meant that we wasted less time during the filming hour trying to work that out.

3. What technology did you use to complete the task, and how did you use it?

The technology that we used to complete the task can be split into hardware and software including a canon camera, microphone, tripod and Adobe Premiere Pro.

Hardware

Camera

To film our shots we used a Canon Legria HF G30 Camera which was small, lightweight, of high quality and had auto focus. This was very helpful because it meant that we could easily change the camera position to get a variety of shots and it saved us a lot of time - which was vital as we only had an hour to film - since we didn't have to focus each individual shot or worry about them being blurry. 

Microphone

We used a Canon DM - 100 Directional Microphone and headphones to try and ensure good sound quality for our clip. However, we did still get some white noise in the background and as the microphone was attached to the camera, it picked up the dialogue from that position which, while still clear, could have been better. 

Tripod

We attached the camera to a Libec TH - 650 HD Tripod for the filming, which ensured that our shots were steady. The spirit level was also helpful in checking that our shots were balanced and not on a tilt, which while used sometimes in films for effect, would not have looked good throughout our entire scene.

Camera, tripod and microphone

My group during Filming

Software

Adobe Premiere Pro

The media technician uploaded all of our shots to the edit suites we would be using and from there we renamed  our shots with the correct number and take before picking out the best ones to use in the actual clip. After that we roughly cut our chosen takes down and put them on the timeline to be more finely cut to achieve continuity. During this, we had to alter the take we were originally going to use for when one of the characters says 'It's just so unfair' because the actor had leaned too far out of shot. However, as we had shot the entire conversation from three angles, over both characters' shoulders and then as a two shot, this was not too much of a problem and we simply used a different angle for that shot. We edited on multiple tracks and, as we had no need for sound bridging, simply ensured that our audio stayed clipped to each video shot.This avoided unmatching the sound with the action which was vital for ensuring that the clip made sense, especially throughout the dialogue.

Premiere Pro screenshot

Two of us in the group have used all of this equipment before in GCSE Media and so were familiar with how everything worked. This was actually useful when completing the task as it meant that less time was wasted trying to figure out how to do or change something.

4. What factors did you take into account when planning, shooting and editing?

There were quite a few factors that we had to take into consideration throughout the task, the biggest of which was meeting the demands of the brief in the time given. 

When planning we had to ensure that we included the theories and actions specified in the brief. We had to do this quite quickly to ensure that we didn't end up making some shots up while we were filming as this would have been very stressful and probably resulted in arguing and even more time wasting, ultimately meaning that we most likely wouldn't have finished or achieved continuity.

During the filming stage we had to take into consideration the fact that we could only film in the media department. We had already arranged with the other group which classroom we would be using and when we could each use the hallway outside, which made things easier. We also had to consider furniture and props, which again we had already planned out during the story boarding stage. As the classroom we were filming in looks out over the field where P.E lessons take place we had to factor in the noise from those pupils over the dialogue which we were shooting by the windows. The theories specified in question 2 were also very important while filming to ensure that it would be possible to achieve continuity when editing. We did this by filming complete actions rather than small segments.

Throughout the editing, we had to ensure that we cut the shots in the best place to effectively match on action and achieve continuity in the time given.

In my opinion, we did successfully take all of the factors into consideration and met the brief with only a few minor errors in continuity.

5. How successful was your sequence? Please identify what worked well and, with hindsight, what would you improve/do differently?

Overall, our sequence was successful as it met the demands of the brief and achieved continuity. We managed to correctly demonstrate all of the relevant theories at least once, although there are some issues with a few shots. 

I think the fact that we used the planning time effectively and actually blocked out our shots to see if they would work in practice, was a reason why we managed to achieve what we set out to do. It meant that we had a solid plan to follow in both the filming and editing stages and this in turn made it easier to complete each step in the time given.

Examples of where we followed filming rules and achieved continuity include:

Match on action

Match on action/ 180° rule/ 30° rule

Shot reverse shot

In hindsight, I would ensure that during filming we checked that the actors did any actions the same during every take. This is because where we shot the conversation from 3 different angles, to make it easier to edit, not all of the gestures stay the same across the shots. This can be seen below where Sailesh's hand ends one shot raised but at the beginning of the next shot his hand is on the table. We unfortunately didn't have any other good takes where this could have been better matched. We should also have filmed the arc and track in shot 5 in the same shot as the MLS of Sailesh walking through the door as this would have made it easier to match the action and a visible decrease in the speed of walking wouldn't be present.

Another thing that I would change if I were to do this again is to use the natural lighting that we had better, as in some shots, for example 1 and 11, it is quite hard to make out the character's features. I would also ensure that even though we were rushing towards the end we still changed the take number as this made it harder in the edit room to name and choose the best shot.

In addition to this I would ensure that our framing was spot on during the filming, as one of our shots had to be changed during editing to a different angle because of poor framing. This in turn meant that we had to switch the following shot to avoid creating a jump cut. However, this caused its own problem as the audience now can't actually see Ray when he says his line of dialogue.

Overall, I think that we were successful because on the whole continuity was achieved and even with the issues highlighted, the scene logically makes sense and flows in a realistic way.

6. What have you learnt from completing this task? Looking ahead, how will this earning be significant when completing the rest of your foundation coursework, do you think?

From completing this task, I have learnt the importance of planning and, in particular, blocking out your shots to test whether they would actually work. This is vital because if you can't accurately portray your ideas in each shot, your film will not make sense to the audience and no amount of editing can change that. 

Although this task was for a sequence that is a lot shorter than the final project, which is to create the opening 2 minutes, including titles, of a film devised by us, the techniques and equipment we learnt and used will be very helpful for the main brief. The hard work and organisation put in as a group in this project is a basis for what we will need to do in the final project and as we will be shooting a longer clip, working with more actors and will generally have more to do, it is important that we remember these qualities and continue to work well together if we are to be successful. The prelim task has taught me how the principles of continuity in film actually work in a practice and how I can incorporate them into any filming that I do. I now also know how much thought and time will need to go into my final project to ensure that it abides by all filming rules and theories and is something that I can be proud of.

HW 4a - Plan Your Prelim Video (BLK)

HW 3b - Existing Continuity Sequence Analysis (BLK)

The above sequence is from the film I, Robot - 2004

The clip starts with a tracking shot into a slight arc around the robot, positioning the audience to the side in the scene, as a bystander. This is followed by shot reverse shot as the main character speaks to the robot. This allows the audience to see the robot's lack of response before going back to the main character's face and his obvious agitation at the situation.

Throughout the beginning of the clip, there is a lot of quick cuts from over the robots' shoulders to over the main character's, but the camera is always kept on the same side of Spooner, and therefore doesn't break the 180 degree rule which is a very important part of continuity filming. Furthermore, eye line match is used in the sequence to ensure that it looks realistic and makes logical sense to the audience.

When the chase starts in the scene, a high angle master shot is used to showcase the entire warehouse and ensure that the audience is spatially aware of the layout of the set and where the characters are running. This is followed by tracking and arcing shots to put the audience into the action and help them to get a feel of the chaos in the scene as Spooner tries to chase a robot in a warehouse full of identical robots.

In the clip, the match on action has been done very well, especially when Spooner is thrown by Sonny and slides into the wall. The next shot is a low angle of Sonny from Spooner's perspective and after is a reverse from Sonny's perspective which has Spooner sitting up, exactly where the audience logically expects him to be from the previous shot. Match on action is vital in ensuring that the characters do not 'jump' from shot to shot and that the scene logically makes sense to the audience.

The 30 degree rule is important for avoiding jump cuts and can be observed in the above clip from I, Robot. The only times that there aren't angle changes of more than 30 degrees, the framing changes considerably. For example, when Spooner shoots the robot a MCU two shot is used which cuts to a LS of him from the same angle.

HW 3a - Continuity Task Evaluation (BLK)

1. During our video two teenagers are walking down a corridor in school, not really paying attention to their surroundings. After the guy goes through the door, he stops to plug his headphones back in and the girl, not realising this, opens the door into him, knocking him to the floor. She then helps him back up.
2. We attempted to create narrative flow by using a variety of shots, camera movement, matching the action from shot to shot and changing our framing in logical steps.
3. Unfortunately, we did not manage to achieve full continuity. This was because our shots were too similar - breaking the 30 degree rule - resulting in jump cuts. We also struggled with the character positions from shot to shot as we didn't have a plan and kept moving out of position after each take to check what it looked like and decide what to do next. In addition, logically, Ayisha should have been able to see Ray before she opened the door as the angle we used over her shoulder meant that the audience could. 
4. If we were to do this exercise again, I would ensure that our shots were more varied, particularly in terms of camera position. I would also change setting as the narrow corridor made it hard to get different angles for the shots and the glass half of the door makes our story less logically sound.

HW 2c - Sound In Film Openings (DYM)

Dialogue

There is very limited dialogue in this opening scene and what is there, isn't until the last minute. The first piece of dialogue is the main character saying 'oh no' after realising that the person who he has made breakfast for (who the audience finds out is his nan later in the opening) has already got out of bed. As this is the first time a character has spoken, the audience can infer that the absence of his nan is probably a prominent theme throughout the film. This suggestion is carried on when Billy runs out of the house to find his nan and has to remind her of who he is. This automatically causes the audience to sympathise with Billy and his nan, while also setting a somber mood that contradicts the joy and messing around seen before this.

Music Track

The music track in the opening starts as diegetic, as it comes from the record player that the main character puts on, but this switches to non-diegetic music within the opening as the character moves about and runs after his nan. During the slow-motion jumping section with the titles, the music track is dominating and no sound effects can be heard. This changes from 1min56 onwards as the track decreases slightly in volume and sound effects can be heard. The volume of the track slightly interferes with the dialogue between Billy and his nan at the end as they speak very softly and are actually quite hard to hear. The lyrics in the track are all about dancing from an early age and this, coupled with the dominating presence of the track, reflects and emphasises the dance part of the film's hybrid dance, comedy-drama genre.

Sound Effects

The opening starts with the soft sound of people talking and birds chirping. This is followed by the sound of a record being taken from its case and the needle being re-positioned before the music track plays. As this beginning section is the only part where music isn't playing and a close up is used, it suggests to the audience that perhaps music and dance is an important part of the film. Sound effects such as toast popping up, footsteps and the main character bumping into the table can all be heard throughout the remainder of the opening,

HW 2b - Analysis Of Titles In Film Openings (DYM)

Timeline of opening

0.00 - 2.22

Timeline of opening

Running Order

In terms of the order in which the titles appear, both Step Up and The Breakfast club follow a similar pattern of institutions behind the film, film title, actors and then crew credit. The difference here is that Step Up credits more actors than The Breakfast Club and does so in the order of main cast followed by supporting and then minor cast where as The Breakfast Club credits the main 7 actors in alphabetical order. The Breakfast Club also includes a title of a quote from David Bowie which is relevant to the film and the themes that it explores.

Placement of Titles

In Step Up, the titles that give institutional information are centralised with the actor and crew credit titles being positioned in the bottom corners. The titles are actually integrated into the scene so that characters are walking in front of them in some cases (these titles are always left up long enough though so that they can be read even when this happens). In The Breakfast Club, the titles are all centralised and this is not a problem as the majority of the opening is simply a black screen with the titles superimposed in yellow/gold lettering. This makes it very easy to see the information and, as there is nothing else on the screen, makes sense. 

Sound

Both film openings feature a non-diegetic song - in Step Up it is simply a track but in The Breakfast Club, as the song was written for the film, it is a musical score. At the beginning of the opening for Step Up, diegetic sound effects can be heard, such as walking, talking and police sirens; this is different to the other opening which doesn't include any diegetic sounds. 

In The Breakfast Club opening, the David Bowie quote shatters and the sound of glass breaking can be heard. This is followed by a male voice over introducing the school, its location and the date. This contrasts with the lack of any form of speech, whether dialogue or voice over, in the opening for Step Up.

Style

The shots used in the opening for Step Up alternate between the ballet dancers in a well lit studio and the hip hop dancers in the street. The shots in the studio have warm lighting with a pink hue which contrasts with the cool lighting and blue hue of the shots in the streets. These differing lighting arrangements play on the contrast between the two groups of dancers and the division between them, which is a key theme highlighted in the film. The titles in this opening are all white which is easily visible in all of the shots regardless of their differing colour schemes. With the exception of the film title, which has each letter swivel in and out, all of the titles simply fade in and out.

The  yellow/gold lettering of the titles in The Breakfast Club opening contrasts with the black background and is similar to the colour of the Universal logo at the very start. The titles simply appear and then fade out and this, along with the fact that the majority of the opening is with a black background, could reflect that films very low budget. The external shot of the school uses natural lighting and the two interior shots we see use fairly naturalistic low key lighting. This is coupled with the fact that the colours aren't very saturated to give a 'real', gritty view of school suggesting that the film isn't a typical 'glossy' teen school drama/comedy.

HW 2a - Existing Opening Sequence Analysis (DYM)

Forrest Gump Opening Scene Analysis

Forrest Gump is an epic drama with strong elements of romance and comedy. The film follows the tale of Forrest's life as he looks back on it, with strangers that he meets at the bus stop. 

The opening sequence mainly focuses on tracking the path of a feather being blown around an American town, with a soft, non-diegetic piano score. Tracking the feather from high in the sky to its path through an ordinary neighbourhood, allows the audience glimpses of the setting, while ensuring that they feel involved in the movement. The feather briefly lands on a man in a suit's shoulder (he doesn't notice) before being blown off again and over a car to land at the main character's (Forrest) feet. Forrest, who is sitting at a bus stop, picks up the feather and puts it in a book he takes from the case he has with him before looking up at the approaching bus.

The events in the opening sequence are all linked together in a logical, flowing way as, for the majority of it, the camera is tracking the path of a feather which takes the audience through the setting of the opening and right to the main character's feet. The audience is aware that this man is the main character as he is the only one lingered on and shown in detail. This is coupled with the fact that he alone takes notice of the feather and in extension the audience as they follow its path. Introducing the main character in this way, ensures that the audience feels like they are in good hands with him, just like the feather is.

In the opening sequence very little story detail is actually revealed. The audience gets the impression that the main character is different to the rest of his society from his attentive nature and unusually upright posture. From this, they can guess that these differences cause problems for the character, that the film is based upon. In addition, having him sitting at a bus stop with a case suggests that the film could follow a journey he takes somewhere or to meet someone. While the audience can probably infer that the narrative is character driven, from the film title and the extreme focus on just one character in the opening, they still don't know where that will take the film and generally what will happen. I believe that this information has been deliberately withheld to create anticipation and more of a shock reveal that the film is split between events in the past and how Forrest is telling them to people he meets - an unusual structure.

At the start of the film the main thing that the audience need to know is who the main character is and what his basic personality is like. This is because the film is entirely character driven and follows Forrest's life story in which his actions and personality play a huge part. The audience needs to learn just enough about the character to ensure that they want to continue watching the film and find out more.

HW 1b - Reflections On Your Film Still (BLK)

1. My film still's genre is teen school drama. This is signified by the age of the character in the shot and the slightly old fashioned school look to the banister on the staircase. The distracted/ pensive, lost in thought expression on the character's face is conventional of this genre when everything starts to go wrong for the main character after a period of happiness. The lack of other characters in the shot creates this feeling of loneliness, especially as it is set in a school which should be busy, and is used in many films in the genre to replicate and emphasise feelings that the audience can relate to.
2. When taking the shot, I wanted to ensure that the school setting came across which is why I used the staircase. I also wanted the lighting to look as natural as possible and so chose a staircase where there was a large window to light the shot. Although the character doesn't look happy and perhaps low key lighting would have fit the mood better, from watching teen school dramas, I have noticed that they tend to use high key lighting throughout the majority of the film, giving everything a more glossy, idealised look. In terms of framing, I chose a low angle shot, not just because it works well on the stairs, but also because it, coupled with the fact that Ayisha is alone in the still, emphasises her importance. It also draws the eye up to her facial expression, which is a key part of the still, even with it being a MLS. This was important because the audience needs to see the space around her to get a feel of her being alone but also have to be able to see the distracted, sombre facial expression. Even though it is a low angle shot on a winding staircase, where perhaps a tilt could be used, I kept the still straight as I felt that it would keep the audience more removed from the situation and therefore emphasise the loneliness of the character and make the audience feel helpless about her situation.
3. I intended the audience to read the still as obviously in the teen school drama genre. I was attempting to communicate that the character is at the disruption/secondary disruption stage of the classic narrative pattern and is therefore feeling down and taking time to think about the situation and her options of what to do.
4. The things that are successful in my still include: the lighting, framing, character portrayal and how they work together to connote the genre.
5. In hindsight, I would try changing costume - having the character in school uniform as this would help connote the genre more strongly (although this would mainly work for a British setting as most American schools do not have a uniform) - and taking the still further round on the stairs so that the railing didn't come in front of the side of the character's head.

HW 1a - Existing Film Still Analysis (DYM)

Blade Runner - 1982

Narrative

The still focuses on the main character, Rick Deckard (played by Harrison Ford), holding a futuristic gun in front of a train carriage and looking at something, or someone, off screen. The framing of the still, having Ford to the far left looking into the space on the opposite side, is coupled with him being armed, to create a sense of mystery and anticipation as the audience wonders what is out there and whether or not it will get Ford. This in turn builds tension and works with the fact that the audience is positioned as a bystander in the shot, to create a sense of helplessness in them for the coming chase/fight. The audience knows to expect some form of conflict as this still represents a typical action code which precedes a conventional sci-fi/action set piece of a chase scene using futuristic technology.

Genre

With the futuristic gun and blue/green lighting, this still firmly suggests that Blade Runner falls into the sci-fi/action crossover genre. However, on closer inspection, the old, rusted look of the train carriage and the characters lack of futuristic clothing, suggests that this can be broken down into the sub genre of cyberpunk. Cyberpunk combines advanced technology in futuristic Earth settings, with a decline in, or stagnation of, social structure and elements of everyday life. It juxtaposes our idea that advanced technology means a better life, with the reality that people, and the everyday basics, can so easily get overlooked in these scenarios. This results in a weird hybrid world, as seen in Blade Runner, that feels very similar to our own, or one from our history, just with extra technology added in, in seemingly random places.

Audience

As discussed in the narrative section, the action code, camera position and framing, ensures that the audience feels helpless for the coming action as they are placed as a bystander, while also creating a sense of anticipation and excitement in them as they wonder what will happen next and whether the main character will be victorious. The cyberpunk sub genre, as mentioned above, could also make the audience feel slightly uncomfortable as the opposites of some advanced technology and basic, almost regressive nature of everything else, completely destroys the conventional notion that life in a futuristic Earth would be wondrous and so much easier than it is now.